Total nightmare

11062016

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

An inspiration for George Orwell s 1984 and a precursor to the work of Philip K. Dick and Stanislaw Lem, We is a classic of dystopian science fiction ripe for rediscovery. Written in 1921 by the Russian revolutionary Yevgeny Zamyatin, this story of the thirtieth century is set in the One State, a society where all live for the collective good and individual freedom does not exist. The novel takes the form of the diary of state mathematician D-503, who, to his shock, experiences the most disruptive emotion imaginable: love for another human being. At once satirical and sobering and now available in a powerful new modern translation We speaks to all who have suffered under repression of their personal and artistic freedom.

An impressive dystopian science fiction novel in which D-503 discovers he is more than just a number and begins to rebel against the wholly-controlling regime as he falls for a beautiful dissident. Written in the 1920s it prefigures both 1984 and Brave New World and offers an intelligent critique of totalitarianism resulting in a ban in the Soviet Union. A really interesting read.